re: Crawfish Boil - Throw lemon in before or after you cut the fire?

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nobody here can tell the difference in crawfish boiled with lemons added before or after the boil. Ain’t no way. This isn’t brewing beer when you drink the crawfish water. You’re eating tail meat from shells soaked in the water.

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Have you tried both ways? I can't tell you how big of a difference it makes, because i haven't done side by side batches. I have been doing the "citrus after the boil" method the last few times, and i think the crawfish taste very good. I also notice citrus when i suck the heads. If you're just eating tale meat and not sucking the heads or the claws, then maybe you're right, i don't know. All i know is i noticed the lemon and citrus in my last few boils moreso than i did before. Feel free to try it or don't. It's your crawfish.

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I posted a few links above that explains how this happens when brewing beer. You boil wort for an hour. The earlier you add the hops, the more aroma/flavor of hops is "boiled off" and all you are left with is the bitterness.

Seeing that hops and citrus share the same oils, then that same wisdom should apply. Now granted, you aren't boiling your crawfish for an hour, but you are bringing that much water back up to a boil after you add your crawfish and citrus (if you do the boil method). The time depends on your burner.

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fair point. and yeah there is significant boil time prior to putting the crawfish in

Tried adding lemons after cutting the heat this weekend and there was a noticeable increase in lemon flavor. Part of that was an increase in smell/aroma. Thanks for the tip.